1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to machinery for handling agricultural sheets of the type used for covering soil.
2. Discussion of Prior Art
The type of sheets with which the invention is concerned include, for example, solid or perforated polyethlene film or woven sheets; that is, any sort of sheet which can be comparatively easy maneuvered without suffering excessive damage.
Sheeting of this type is used for various agricultural purposes. For example sheets can be used to cover newly planted seeds and crops in the early stages of growth to protect them from adverse weather conditions. It is also common practice to lay sheets of this type of material over prepared fields in, for example, October to retain heat in the soil prior to the planting of crops in, for example, February.
Sheets are usually layed in strips of about 1.5 meters in width with an adequate spacing between adjacent strips for the accommodation of tractor wheels. The edges of the sheets are buried in the earth to anchor the sheets, and there are many machines known for carrying out the function of laying sheets and burying the edges. However it is frequently necessary to carry out action underneath the sheets: for example to drill seeds in February under sheets laid in October, and to apply fertiliser, insecticide and the like to crops at a stage where it is still desirable to have the crops covered. This involves either raising the sheets, or perforating the sheets, which inevitably results in some loss of effectiveness thereof.
There therefore exists a need for some means of raising sheets, carrying out a function on crops beneath the sheets, and then relaying the sheets.